Article by
Barbados Today

Published on
November 15, 2016

He will go down as one of the greatest athletes of all time, and Usain Bolt wants to be regarded alongside Muhammad Ali and Pele.

Usain Bolt wants to leave a lasting legacy to match those of Muhammad Ali and Pele when he retires from athletics next year.

Usain Bolt (r) and Pele.

The Jamaican sprint superstar has won gold in the 100 metres, 200m and 4x100m in each of the past three Olympics, firmly cementing his status as one of the greatest athletes in history.

Now 30 years old, Bolt is planning to step away from the sport following the World Championships in London in 2017 and his new film, I Am Bolt, is due to be released later this month – a behind-the-scenes documentary looking at his preparations for Rio 2016.

Bolt says the film has been made with the aim of showing fans the sacrifices he has made to remain at the very top of his field for so long.

“Looking at Muhammad Ali and Pele and watching their films and watching them work hard and dominate their sports – I’m like, you know what, I want to be like them,” he told Sky Sports.

“When I retire I want people to talk about me, the drive, the dedication, I want them to talk about me.

“I want them to put films on about me, so this is why I’m making a film about my life.”

Bolt insisted his plans to retire after London 2017 will not change, claiming he does not have the drive to continue to push himself in training.

“The older you get the more you have to sacrifice, the more disciplined you have to be and personally I don’t think I have that discipline. I know when it’s time to quit,” he said.

“I asked Michael Johnson ‘why did you retire when you were on top? You were dominating, no one was beating you’. He goes ‘I done everything I need to do in the sport’.

“If you get to a point where there’s no drive for you to train then just forget it, just stop or else you’re going to start losing races and start embarrassing yourself.”